Preparations in Paleo collections - Darwin Core Hour Input Form 4/5/2017 11:46:10

[iDigBioBot]

A user submitted this information via the Darwin Core Hour webform: Timestamp: 4/5/2017 11:46:10 Please provide a topic of interest: Preparations - how paleo is using (or is not using) the Preparations field Are you capable of and interested in participating: Yes Who else would you recommend to participate in the presentation: Holly Little What resources can you point to: Your name: Amanda Millhouse Your email: ammillhouse@gmail.com Your GitHub username: @amillhouse @hollyel

[amillhouse]

To expand on what I submitted...

The paleo community is using the preparations field in a variety of ways. For example, at NMNH Dept of Paleobiology, we map our internal preparations table to dwc: preparations, and this is where we store data that records if the fossil is a cast, includes thin sections, slides, peels, etc. Since there isn’t a great option for mapping morphology/descriptions (femur, m1-2, partial skull, etc.) in dwc, other institutions are using Preparations to record this data. In regards specifically to morphology, some institutions map it to other fields like OccurenceRemarks or don't map it at all, like us. The paleo community seems to be in the very early stages of acknowledging this discrepancy and recognizing the need for better dwc field options or extensions for paleo data like this.

Holly Little and I have done a lot of work in exploring this issue internally and we don't necessarily need to present on it, but we are happy to be part of the discussion about how the field is used.

[pzermoglio]

@amillhouse Thanks for the topic and the information about it. We will certainly address this in the discussion of the next Darwin Core Hour, which will precisely address the issues around the terms dwc:preparations and dwc:establishmentMeans. And will very much welcome input from you and Holly!

When you say you map your internal preparations table to dwc:preparations, do you mean you map your field "preparations" to the dwc term or do you also have a mapping of particular values in that term?

[debpaul]

@amillhouse @hollyel others (AppleCore) have done some relevant work on these issues (specifically the need for a data model that supports sharing lots of information related to specimen preparations). Hopefully, we can get @jmacklin to join us / and maybe present something on this in the future.

[amillhouse]

@pzermoglio We map the field "Preparation" in a table to dwc: preparations, and that is the only field mapped. I attached an image from a recent presentation that includes a screenshot of our table (which can include additional data such as count, or additional remarks about a cast, etc.) as well as how that data looks in iDigBio. Our "Preparation" field is a lookup list of a variety of terms that we're still reviewing/revising (and developing controlled vocabularies for! :) )

[debpaul]

@amillhouse If you were at dwc hour 3, you'll already know that dwc hour 4 will cover dwc:preparations - so hope you will be there to add known issues and help work on solutions!

[pzermoglio]

@amillhouse Thanks Amanda! That clarifies. I'd be super interested in the lookup list and the associated controlled vocab. Is there a way to see it in its current state? or, will it be released when revision is finished? Looking forward to it! :)

[amillhouse]

@debpaul yes! Hearing dwc 4 will be on prepations is what prompted me to note that this is currently a field paleo is starting to look at more closely. I'm looking forward to the discussion!

@pzermoglio It's still a work in progress. We've only recently started to analyze how we're going to use the table. So far, we have determined how we're recording cast and lot data and will have documentation on our internal best practices for recording that data probably by SPNHC in June (ideally), but we're still working on how best to standardize the other terms. In the fall of 2015, @hollyel and I gave a webinar that included our first initial review of dwc: preparations and how that did/did not map well with our internal "Preparations" field. I've posted that slide below because it includes our lookup list values in comparison with the dwc: preparations definition and examples. This was 2015, so a few things have changed, but these are the values that we will be developing a more concise lookup list for in the future.

[ekrimmel]

discussion from DwC Hour 4: Evolution of Darwin Core Terms and Extensions, included here just for completeness' sake...

Amanda Millhouse (NMNH Paleo): In regards to developing a preparations extension that could apply to paleo data, some data is only mapped to preparations because there is no other field in which to store it (eg vertebrate fossil morphology). So prep extensions to be used for paleo likely need to happen in conjunction with potential development of other fields that might be better for paleo data (or at least having an awareness of paleo data challenges).

Teresa Mayfield (UTEP Biodiversity Collections): @Amanda I am in agreement on the paleo issues.

Gary, speaking: One possible reason we see so many unique values in the preparation field is because people are using it as a catch-all a la Amanda’s comments.

Andy, speaking: Agreed, and agreed that it is important to get representation from a broad span of disciplines.

John Wieczorek (Darwin Core): @Amanda and others. The Zooarchaeological community is also active in trying to figure out how best to capture collection objects ("Elements" in that community), which may have other interesting characteristics such as taphonomy.

Teresa Mayfield (UTEP Biodiversity Collections): @John is there a way for me to monitor that conversation? (Not sure I can contribute, but want to remain aware...)

Amanda Millhouse (NMNH Paleo): @John excellent! And yes, I'm happy to help give input for what types of paleo data are being mapped to dwc preparations.

John Wieczorek (Darwin Core): @Teresa Yes, Kitty Emery, Rob Guralnick, Laura Brenskelle, and Michelle LeFebvre at UF are in the midst of a seed grant working on this topic.

[ekrimmel]

people interested in this topic: https://github.com/VertNet/dwc-qa-manage/issues/23